5 Traits of Great Sales People

21 Apr 2015

Who is your favorite Sales Person?

If you go down the memory lane, some individuals stand out due their ability to impress you on some product or service and influence your decision making in a subtle way. Even though lot of buying decisions are made online, we love to have intelligent conversations with humans when the stakes are high. Those who facilitate that and address our queries after careful listening end up as Great Sales people. They don’t sell anything but customers end up buying due to the value shown during the discussions.

How do you identify them? They are in our midst and show up when you look out for them. Let us learn more about this tribe!

We have coined the CLEAR acronym that lists the 5 traits exhibited by great sales people and look out for these when you confront the next sales pitch.

Customer-oriented

Long term success of a sales person is primarily determined by the relationships with customers. It requires dedication, consistency and commitment to serve the customers by addressing their challenges on-hand. A Sales person needs to ‘think’ for the customer, empathize with their situation, there by making an emotional connection. When someone practices this wholeheartedly in every single customer call, it is purposeful and well appreciated by the customers. Also, when a sales person analyzes the problem without worrying about the ‘commissions / rewards’ solutions would appear due to clear thinking!

A customer-oriented sales person may not close all the deals but would definitely stay ‘close’ to the hearts of customers.

Listening

Ability of the Sales person to listen throughout the ‘Sales Cycle’ is critical for successful transactions. Listening is not limited to what is being told; it includes the ability to understand the ‘words not spoken’ and act accordingly. This is more pronounced while working with scenarios where multiple decision makers are involved. Through careful listening, one can understand the true challenge that needs to be addressed rather than focusing on frivolous objections. Good listening helps to follow through and prepare the delivery team for the impending project and support the execution.

A listening Sales person would automatically become a mentor batting for the team success.

Enthusiastic

We constantly seek one and only thing in life and that is Happiness. We want to surround ourselves with joyful individuals with high energy and this ‘likability’ factor helps in creating powerful networks. Enthusiasm is contagious and it creates a positive influence over the group and gather support for the cause. Sales people who are cautious tend to lie low, where as enthusiastic folks energize the tribe to achieve greater heights. People remember happy moments and great sales people create those situations naturally.

An enthusiastic sales person not only closes the deal; but also opens up the next opportunity.

Adaptive

Sales opportunities have become more expansive with the global reach of customers. It is good from the standpoint of sales person as the funnel is bigger; and it is better utilized only if the sales person is adaptive to different regions, cultures, and countries. Social presence has become so important for successful sales people and customers validate online profiles [Linked In, Facebook, Twitter] prior to meetings. Learning to operate new gadgets, understanding latest technology is no longer an option, but a requirement!

An adaptive sales person is receptive to changing situations and this agility helps to achieve goals!

Remarkable

Leaving a legacy is an important self-actualization goal of successful people. Great sales people plan their customer interaction to ‘add value’ in every communication be it through email, text or over phone. Customers remark about them with their peers, network groups talking about the value derived and recommend their offerings. It is the duty of every sales person to strive hard to become remarkable in their respective fields and that elevates the society as a whole. Being remarkable in the minds of a customer is the highest gratification for a sales person. This can be achieved only by those who are customer-oriented, adaptive, and enthusiastic. Remarkable sales people are viewed as ‘Solution Experts’ and trusted completely by the customer.

A remarkable sales person is a ‘game changer’ and has the ability to lead the tribe to new frontiers.

Please post your comments about other noteworthy traits exhibited by Sales people…